Tag: volunteerkinetic Page 3 of 4

International Volunteer Day 2019

By

On 5th December 2019

In Community, News & Views

Today is the chance to celebrate your hard work, so sit back and bask in the efforts you have achieved over the last year. Today isn’t about anyone else. It’s all about you.

Let’s take a minute to see what exactly you’ve been up to.

Youth Hostels Association

YHA began recruiting more youth volunteers, the aim was to get more young people work-ready. YHA partnered with North Lindsey College, where students were encouraged to take a minimum of 30 volunteering hours of work experience. Students could take part in a number of projects including building bug houses, decorating, gardening and many more projects. As we all know qualifications are only half of your CV, having experience is just as essential. So congratulations to the YHA volunteers, in preparing the younger generations for the world of work!

Humanity Road

Every year Humanity Road have helped thousands of people around the world which have been affected by disasters. In 2018 alone, Humanity Road volunteers responded to 68 events in 31 countries. These events included 21 earthquakes, 17 floods, 7 wildfires, 12 hurricanes, 4 tornadoes, 5 volcanoes and 1 technology event. Humanity Road’s volunteers really excel themselves by aiding people to points of rescue in unpredictable disasters. If anyone deserves a day, it’s definitely you. Truly amazing work, done by people that care.

Nightstop

Nightstop volunteers allow young homeless people who require emergency accommodation to stay in their own homes overnight. Volunteers provide accommodation, a bite to eat and somewhere safe, where people are no longer in a vulnerable environment. We had the opportunity to visit Nightstop earlier in the year and we have to say the team of volunteers we met were incredibly friendly with many great stories. So a special happy volunteer day goes out to Nightstop and volunteers Helen Patrick, Peter Conroy, Rosemary Grovestock, Dave Batchelor and organiser Beth.

Liverpool Football Club Foundation

Liverpool FC works with local communities in and around Liverpool, aiming to deliver long-term change which is sustainable within these communities. Not just for current generations, but for future generations as well. In 2018 to 2019, LFC’s programmes attracted 28,630 children which took part in activities.

But a lot of the work LFC does couldn’t go without a helping hand from their volunteers. Me and Alex witnessed the contribution volunteers have first hand. We witnessed this earlier in the year when we volunteered alongside the experts of LFC’s volunteering team, which was a true pleasure to be apart of.

Happy International volunteer day to Dawn Georgeson, Michael Murray, Anas Usman, Paul and everyone else at LFC. I wish I could name you all but I’d be here all day.

Dreams Come True

Here at TeamKinetic, we have only recently begun working with Dreams Come True, so this is not only just the opportunity to say Happy International Volunteer Day, but also to say welcome aboard. Dreams Come True has a simple aim of enriching the lives of young people who have serious life-limiting conditions.

The volunteers and staff at Dreams Come True ensure that every young person and child has an unforgettable experience which fulfils their dreams and creates life-lasting memories. They aim to go above and beyond, treating all young people and families with the most respect through what can be challenging times.

TeamKinetic Volunteer Management

Uniting communities and bringing people together through volunteering is one of the main foundations of TeamKinetic. One of the many benefits of this job is meeting lots of fascinating people, who are all so driven to achieving various objectives and helping others before themselves.

Happy International Volunteer Day 2019

5 Reasons Why We Need Volunteers

By

On 18th November 2019

In News & Views

More than 1 billion people volunteer globally, as you can imagine that is a lot of volunteering hours to be added up. In fact, this is equivalent to 109 million full-time workers. Safe to say that volunteer managers have their work cut out for them, but why do we need so many volunteers?

1. Richness is not what you think

You can spend endless money on watches, clothes and gadgets. But how much have you spent being there for the ones we love and care about the most?

Do possessions make you rich? Well, I don’t have that type of richness. My richness is life forever.

Bob marley

Volunteers are not there for the money, but only to be of assistance to others they can work and connect with. Not because they’re employed to, but because they want to. They put their needs before others without monetary requirements – it’s purely from the heart. Here at TeamKinetic, we have been able to witness millions of logged hours from thousands of volunteers, it’s simply astonishing to see and we hope to see many many more wonderful people engaging with fantastic volunteering opportunities.

2. The greatest gift of all

Volunteers truly grant their greatest gift of all. Time. We’re all constantly caught up in the rat race of busy working lives, sometimes I think a few extra hours in the day would be a blessing.

Volunteers give their time day in, day out. This value can not be quantified or replaced, but it can be valued and respected. We can all agree that without volunteers’ generosity, many services and experiences would be much worse off.

3. Lights in the darkness

Volunteers provide comfort for those who are going through difficult times in their lives. A small light in the darkness can really affect someone in a million different ways. It’s the light that sparks hope that someone cares and is willing to spend time but most importantly listen. Read more about how volunteers are making others feel better about themselves, visit Samaritans and see the true difference being made by volunteers for yourself.

4. Resilience and reliability

Volunteers weave safety nets within various organisations which give organisations a resilient and reliable backbone of support which can help the structure and workflow within many organisations.

Volunteering creates solidarity and connections among people by working together to build resilient communities. At TeamKinetic we know the importance of being able to build and unite people through volunteer management. Management allows volunteers to be able to join and find opportunities easily within communities.

5. Irreplaceable value

We take many things for granted in life, how many of us allow ourselves to sit back and take a moment to appreciate one another?

The same goes for volunteers.

The value a volunteer holds is irreplaceable. Every volunteer is different in their own way. Although volunteers may be completing the same opportunity, each will have characteristics which make them uniquely valuable.

Five seems such a small collection and I assure you, there are many more reasons why we need volunteers. We champion the idea, that our customers and users, to value and respect volunteers more often. They achieve a lot more than we sometimes imagine, they truly are the backbone of many brilliant organisations.

You can find TeamKinetic on social media and listen to our podcast:

Twitter       Facebook       LinkedIn       YouTube       Instagram       Podcast

 

Have you enjoyed using TeamKinetic? If you could leave us a review on Capterra, we’d really appreciate it! We’ll even send you a little thank you.

5 Ways To Encourage Repeat Volunteering

By

On 15th October 2019

In Community, News & Views, Volunteer Management

You may have witnessed driving past a rescue team late at night in gruelling weather conditions, with deafening sirens and eye-capturing flashing lights. Or alternatively, you may know someone personally who may have ended their night by dialling the emergency services. Many UK rescue teams work voluntarily like Mountain Rescue and British Red Cross. But why would anyone want to keep volunteering for a cause which is considered physically and mentally tiring?

Here are 5 ways how your organisation can help retain your hardworking volunteers and keep them smiling.

1. Be Realistic

The Earth isn’t flat.

Let us skip back to basics if you want to engage your volunteers. Opportunities should have actionable goals in which will enable your volunteers to be successful when volunteering. If your volunteers have no clear set of directions, then how will he or she find their way? Volunteers also need to be clear on what your organisation stands for. Volunteers should be made clear of your mission and vision statements. This will then allow them to understand the type of organisation they are working for. Retaining volunteers to work coherently to achieving what your business wants will help aid success.

2. Show Results

It’s all very well getting volunteers to join opportunities, however where are the results? Showing results is highly important to positively motivate your volunteers. Volunteers want to hear feedback from an opportunity they have participated in. This can easily be communicated in a polite informal email or text, this would make the volunteer then feel valued. It’s key that your volunteers feel valued for their efforts. Because this generates a sense of belonging, which is a key psychological need which will help retain volunteers. Volunteers who feel like they belong will not need to leave.

3. Communicate And Recognize

The best way to establish trust between an organisation and its volunteers is to talk to them. This is a really simple way of further developing relationships. Which can be done over a vast amount of platforms, emails, text messages, phone calls, and social media. It’s important to know where your audience is so you can communicate with them in the most appropriate form.

Everybody likes to be recognized for their achievements, even your non-profit volunteers. This recognition will stimulate a sense of gratitude between the volunteers and yourselves, making them want to volunteer again. A key part of retaining volunteers is recognising any type of achievement because this affects the self-esteem of anybody. Think about yourself for a moment, would you like an achievement you’ve done to be praised? I know personally that any form of praise or congratulations lifts my mood and motivates me to keep on the right path. It doesn’t necessarily need to be a huge gesture, it could be verbal or written. Volunteers who are recognized for their achievements are more likely to have higher self-esteem, a more positive outlook on life, and better mental health.

4. Involve the community

Try to be inclusive to everyone to retain volunteers, by encouraging volunteers to get neighbours, friends, and family members from the community to join opportunities with them. This will only make the experience more enjoyable for the volunteer. We all need to feel emotionally and physically safe, and we all need close supportive relationships. A sense of community provides this, by giving local people a voice to connect with one another and meet new people.

5. Volunteer Management

Does your organisation offer opportunities which are concise, clear and easy to connect to online. If not, then it will be vitally important that you consider using volunteering management software. If your services are easy to use then you are ten times more likely to retain existing volunteers. Making your volunteering management system easier will help your organisations productivity, plus will help the volunteers connect to your opportunities. Statistically, adults over the age of 65 are more likely to volunteer; this age group of people do not consider themselves to be most confident online and are hesitant to use a computer. Meaning the simpler your online portal, the more likely you will be to retain existing volunteers.

A final note from Teamkinetic

Although these five tips for retaining volunteer are important to follow, it’s equally important to note. People consistently volunteer because volunteering is aligned and persistent with their own personal characteristics and self-image. People value what they are doing and are able to extract benefits from the volunteering experience, which helps with their own self-growth. Like anything in life people either want to do something or they don’t, you won’t be able to retain everyone. Although we hope you can.

World Mental Health Day

By

On 8th October 2019

In Community, News & Views, Volunteer Management

World Mental Health Day is a day of global mental health awareness and education, which aims to eliminate the stigma behind mental health. Life, as we all know, can be difficult and these problems can arise and affect many of us in a whole range of ways. How our bodies cope with this can have different effects on our mind and soul. Before we judge one another be mindful of what that person may have gone through, what wars they may have battled and what obstacles they may have overcome or maybe overcoming. It’s time to leave our judgmental thoughts and started looking after each other. The world we live in today faces too much animosity and hostility. We must all learn to love and get along with one another, we all live in one world – it’s time we became one and start working together.

Mental Health in the UK

Around one in four people in the UK will suffer from mental health issues each year, while only one in eight people are receiving treatment for mental health. One in six people in England each week suffer from a common mental health issue such as depression and anxiety.

A total of 70.9 million prescriptions for anti-depressants were given out in England in 2018 by the NHS. This is an increase of 3.4 million from 2017 to 2018. From 2015 to 2018 the number of prescriptions for anti-depressants for young people increased by almost 1 million! From these figures, it is clear to say mental health is an issue which is rising in the UK.

Causes of mental health issues

Mental health issues can affect people for a wide range of reasons. Trauma, loss, isolation, abuse, unemployment and the list keeps going. For many individuals, it’s a various combination of factors/experiences which have lead to negative outcomes. Yet everyone is different, one person’s mental stability will have different variances to what they are more tolerant of than others.

Social media


Over the last decade, social media has grown dramatically making each and every one of us more connected than we ever have been. Developing relationships which are halfway around the world is now a reality. On average a person in the UK checks their phone 28 times per day! It often makes me think what has the world come to, is this right? or is this wrong? or is this just the world we live in today and this is merely just evolution?

Implications of social media

The bottom line is that social media can have a detrimental effect on our mental health. Especially on the younger generation. Who are almost dependable on their mobile device, almost feeling lost without it. I know myself only being 20 that I do find it hard to break away from my device, I’m not proud of this and I do wish I could separate away more easily. Essentially social media is minimizing the human connections we make with one another. Limiting our social and communication skills in the real world because our heads are buried way beneath endless tweets and trending hashtags. Taking us away from the real world and keeping us trapped in virtual reality. Where we only care about our virtual selves and how others view us on various social platforms.

Low self-esteem is something young people suffer with when scrawling down photoshop perfect Instagram profiles. Where the immaculate and perfect image is captured – after hours upon hours of makeup editing and light adjustments! A study found people suffer from envy and self-doubt, as a result of comparing their own lives to those which are deemed to have the perfect lavish lifestyles we apparently all crave.

This leads me to say that it’s no wonder that social media is leading to unhappiness in people if used without caution. Causing anxiety and depression. We’re in a constant battle with ourselves to be better than everyone else, to look and dress the best, when really we should be happy and comfortable in our own skins. However many of generation Z have realised their infatuation with their smartphones and social media and have begun to quit various platforms. In an attempt to restore their mental health.

Volunteering and Mental Health

Volunteering can significantly boost your mental health and well-being. Mental and emotional well-being was found to be better in those who volunteer frequently, and worse in those who didn’t offer their help in any form. Recently universities in Birmingham and Southampton conducted a survey of 5,000 households across the UK. Those that volunteered regularly scored six per cent higher on the health and wellbeing.

Older generations

Voluntary work done by those over the age of 65 is set to be worth £5bn more in 2020 than it was in 2010. Volunteering provides a purpose and meaning, especially to older people who may find themselves more isolated than they used to be. Allowing them to build a social network of friends in which they can meet up with on a regular basis improving the well-being of the volunteer. The association is simple, the higher your well-being the more inclined you will feel to help others. Vice versa, the more you help others the higher your state of well-being.

Unemployed

Those in unemployment tend to have lower self-esteem and mental health. Without employment, people find it hard to motivate themselves for the day ahead. They have no structure, paid income, and feel they have less of an identity. Voluntary work will be able to benefit someone who is unemployed, helping them regain structure in life. Although the work is unpaid and will not be able to replace that aspect, it still gives people meaning and purpose.

Employers are more likely to employ someone has done voluntary work, over someone who has not. Volunteering allows you to acquire skills and knowledge which can be put to good use in employment, demonstrating higher levels of productivity as a potential employee. Also, it’s not just about what you know, it’s who you know to get you in the front door! Volunteering allows people to network giving them the opportunity to meet people they may never have met before, which could lead to great employment opportunities further on.

On a final note

As many of you already know TeamKinetic is a strong believer in volunteering and all the good in which can come from volunteering. But today the most important message of all is to be aware of mental health issues globally. If you suffer from mental health issues seek help and seek advice, don’t be afraid to talk to.

See below specialist mental health services.


The Samaritans offer emotional support 24 hours a day, in full confidence. Call 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org.


Mind provides information on a range of mental health topics to support people in their own area from 9.00 am to 6.00 pm, Monday to Friday. Call 0300 123 3393 or email info@mind.org.uk.

Anxiety UK runs a helpline staffed by volunteers with personal experience of anxiety from 9:30-5:30, Monday to Friday. Call 08444 775 774.

MindEd is a free educational resource on children and young people’s mental health for all adults.

Introducing TeamKinetic: Steve Hall – Stepping into the Unknown

By

On 9th November 2017

In News & Views

TeamKinetic …what fun we’ve had!

Tasked with introducing myself through a blog, I thought how I could best describe myself and the journey I have had so far with TeamKinetic.

There was a time when TeamKinetic was just a topic of conversation at the dinner table as Chris, my brother in law, would tell me how he and Rolf had been developing a piece of software for volunteer management. I remember Chris telling me how they ran the company out of the spare area in his dad’s office, which was often filled with construction workers and their muddy boots.

This was quite the contrast to my corporate job! I had spent seven years working for an American pharmaceutical company as IT Project Manager. I had initially enjoyed the job for its methodical approach required, with clear outcomes and a process to achieving them being visible. The job required me to travel hospital to hospital working up to three projects at a time. I was a testament to Lenny Henry and his #goodnightguarentee!

For sure I took advantage of all the free shampoo I could, my bathroom was full of them! But after that the benefits wore thin. Living out of a suitcase had become tiresome and I started considering what I could do instead; I wanted something that actually had an impact, a place where I could build something and see the results.

I decided I was in a strong enough financial position to hand my notice in and begin my journey into the unknown. I had several solo contracts that were going well and I decided that I would continue working for myself and would build my own company.

It was during one of my contracts in Birmingham, that I received a call from Chris asking for some help on the implementation of volunteer management website. Our chats continued and soon progressed into a proposition. I decided I would finish my current contract and then join TeamKinetic as a partner.

Eight years on I have never looked back. As the company has grown, our systems improved and our client base ever expanding, I have found gratification and enjoyment in my role! Each time we develop a new function, release an update or meet a new client I get excited that we are genuinely helping others.

As I am the ‘Implementer’ (cue mischievous face for comical value) I spend most of my time speaking and visiting our amazing clients. The interpersonal aspect of a job is something I value highly, wanting to work with people who are happy and also wanting to make a difference is very rewarding.

Each day brings a new task and challenges, every time a new one pops up I write it on a yellow post-it-note and put on my monitor, then upon completing them, I get to scrunch it up and throw it away, with deep satisfaction. My life a much happier nowadays, I spend more time with my family, I have a job that I wake up happy to go to, and I feel like I am making the better impact in the world.

Steve

Implementation Consultant

steve@teamkinetic.co.uk

If you have any thoughts you would like to share, please feel free to contact me.

Manchester Metropolitan University 2nd Annual Conference “Sports Volunteering in the current landscape” – New speaker announced

By

On 12th April 2016

In Education, News & Views

All requests for Free tickets must be made by Friday 22nd April  – Please don’t miss out

The latest speaker to be confirmed is Yvonne Harrison – Chief Executive at GreaterSport, a leading Greater Manchester Charity Changing Lives through Sport and physical Activity.

Recently announced winner of Public and Third Sector Director of the Year by the North West Institute of Directors, Yvonne is an experienced leader with a track record of delivering positive impact through a high performing team.  Providing leadership across Greater Manchester to position Physical Activity and Sport as a key contributor to economic growth and population health improvement.
GreaterSport is striving to get one million people moving by 2017 and works with a wide range of partners to achieve this.
We believe Sport & Physical Activity;

– Makes a significant contribution to Greater Manchester’s social wellbeing and economic growth.

– Enhances lives, brings communities together and forms good sustainable lifelong habits.

– Should be promoted and celebrated for all, here in one of the greatest regions in the World for sport.

Yvonne is also a Non-Executive Director for Manchester Mangers Rugby League Club and Active Tameside.  She is also currently studying a Masters in Sports Directorship at Manchester Metropolitan University.

Yvonne will be part of our panel session when member sof the audience will get the chance to discuss the topics of the day with our experts.

To claim your free ticket to this event please get in contact here and let us know the days you will be attending, the names of the people attending on each day and if you can also let me know if you have any specific dietary requirements or access needs that would be most useful.

4th May 2016 –  Sports Volunteering in the Current Landscape

All VolunteerKinetic users are entitled to one FREE ticket to this event

mmu
Speakers include:

Geoff ThompsonMBE – Youth Charter

Tony Jameson– Sporting Memories

Charlotte Hill– Step up to Serve

Pukal Rana– Disclosure & Barring Service

Graham Herstell– Ball Zone

Chris Martin, Rolf Herbert and Nick Lowden  – Volunteer Kinetic and Greater Sport

The conference will encompass all aspects of volunteering in sport and the wider agenda within the current landscape. It will also provide a platform to draw together practitioners and academic perspectives from across the volunteering landscape to share, collaborate and network. There will also be the opportunity for delegates to attend keynote lectures from academics and practitioners, academic research presentations and interactive practitioner-led workshops. More speakers will be announced as they are confirmed.

If you want to purchase additional tickets for the 4th of May conference you can buy these at:

http://www.business.mmu.ac.uk/knowledgehub/mmu-sports-volunteering-conference-sports-volunteering-current-landscape.php for an early bird price of £38.00

If you need any more information about the event please do not hesitate to get in touch with me on 0161 914 5757 ext 22.

 

TeamKinetic Version 6 – New Events and Provider Layout

By

On 8th March 2015

In TeamKinetic Features, Technical Updates

This is one in a series of posts where I will be discussing the new features and changes we have built into version 6 of our volunteer management software TeamKinetic.

We often get asked how providers can tell volunteers a little about themselves and promote their organisation to the volunteers. Previously the provider profile has been limited to a few words and a logo.

In TeamKinetic Version 6 we have improved the look and feel of the provider profile immensely. Providers can now add a large background header image, overlayed with their logo and organisation name. There is also a WYSIWYG* text editor where they can complete their profile text, choosing their own colour scheme and font sizes.

You take a look at First Choice Sports‘ profile on our demo site.

We have also added a similar layout for the events pages which advertise and promote an event and the opportunities and roles available within that event. In addition, the events home page lets you add documents for the volunteers to download.

We think these changes will greatly enhance the visual experience for the volunteer and hopefully lead to more volunteer signups for events.

*What you see is what you get – A text editor that allows you to see exactly how your text will appear to the end user.

You can find TeamKinetic on social media and listen to our podcast:

Twitter       Facebook       LinkedIn       YouTube       Instagram       Podcast

 

Have you enjoyed using TeamKinetic? If you could leave us a review on Capterra, we’d really appreciate it! We’ll even send you a little thank you.

TeamKinetic Version 6 – Accreditation

By

On 7th March 2015

In TeamKinetic Features, Technical Updates

This is one in a series of posts where I will be discussing the new features and changes we have built into version 6 of our volunteer management software TeamKinetic.

accreditation_badge

Some of our larger customers regularly run very large national events that may involve hundreds of volunteers across many roles. We already provide useful downloads listing all the volunteers on events and which sessions they are signed up for. What we didn’t have was any sort of accreditation service.

TeamKinetic Version 6 sees the release of our first stage in our accreditation process, the creation and printing of volunteer identification badges. This allows you to specify the text of the badge title, a general information section and an access area box. The badge comes complete with the volunteer’s profile picture, their unique ID and your organisation logo.

Once you are happy with your text, you simply select the opportunity or event you wish to create badges for and a PDF document will be automatically generated containing a single volunteer on each A6-sized page. This document is ready for printing in-house or sending out to your preferred print shop.

We think this will be a great time saver, and even if you do not need a specific ID card for your event or opportunity it’s a good method of giving your volunteers a sense of belonging and building that team mentality.

You can find TeamKinetic on social media and listen to our podcast:

Twitter       Facebook       LinkedIn       YouTube       Instagram       Podcast

 

Have you enjoyed using TeamKinetic? If you could leave us a review on Capterra, we’d really appreciate it! We’ll even send you a little thank you.

TeamKinetic Version 6 – Fairer Rating System

By

On 6th March 2015

In TeamKinetic Features, Technical Updates

This is one in a series of posts where I will be discussing the new features and changes we have built into version 6 of our volunteer management software TeamKinetic.

From version 2 we have included a feedback system for both volunteers and providers, where they can leave a star rating out of 5 and some comments of their experiences.

TeamKinetic Version 5 saw the arrival of an admin approval system where, if they choose to, the administrator would approve each feedback before either the provider or volunteer could see it.

Volunteers could see their average feedback rating, how they were doing compared to the rest of the volunteers and the individual comments that providers had left.

We never wanted to demotivate the volunteers but our and other’s research showed us that by ranking the volunteers we risked just that. The star rating also skewed the data as providers when faced with very many volunteers to rate and comment on would often just leave the rating at the default value.

feedback

TeamKinetic Version 6 introduces a whole new rating system based on thumbs up or thumbs down. This binary system is much simpler and clearer to both the volunteers and providers. Volunteers will only ever see their thumbs-up comments, the very rare thumbs-down comments will be directed to the administrator so they can try to resolve any issues and action accordingly.

We have also removed the overall ranking from the volunteer’s homepage, just giving them their total thumbs-ups so far. We think this will help to keep the volunteer motivated and their overall feedback will not be susceptible to skewing by a rogue single-star rating that was usually a mistake or by lots of default 3-star ratings.

You can find TeamKinetic on social media and listen to our podcast:

Twitter       Facebook       LinkedIn       YouTube       Instagram       Podcast

 

Have you enjoyed using TeamKinetic? If you could leave us a review on Capterra, we’d really appreciate it! We’ll even send you a little thank you.

Volunteering Internships

By

On 6th March 2015

In News & Views, Policy and Operations

As always we look to bring you the best practice from across the Voluntary sector. This article from the NCVO gives some fantastic guidance on Volunteering Internships for Volunteer managers.

As more organisations have realised the value of offering young people the opportunity to gain experience, whilst benefiting from their willingness to work hard and learn, it is becoming even more important that organisations do not take advantage of this willingness.  The NCVO offer some common sense advice that ensures the Volunteer is valued and that they gain as much from the experience as the organisation does.

If you have examples of how your organisation has benefited from a Volunteer internship or lessons you may have learnt from using Volunteers as interns please feel free to share at info@smarterindesign.com.

See the full article and many more like it at

http://knowhownonprofit.org/people/volunteers-and-your-organisation/volunteering-internships#guidance

NCVO have worked with a range of organisations to review the current situation and produce guidance on volunteer internships to help charities ensure they fully understand any legal obligations they may have and to ensure expectations about the role between both parties are clear.

Internships have been the focus of much debate recently, with some arguing that they are either a form of job substitution or a way of exploiting cheap labour, and others that they are vital to both charities and those who want to work for them.

Much of the confusion comes from the fact that the term ‘intern’ has no basis in UK law. There is no legal definition of an ‘internship’. So people undertaking a role described as an ‘internship will still in legal terms be defined as either a worker or a volunteer.

Some charities describe some volunteer roles as internships as they have found it valuable to offer volunteering opportunities with a stronger skill-development focus and because describing a position as an ‘internship’ has been found to attract more volunteers.

NCVO have worked with a range of organisations to review the current situation and produce guidance on volunteer internships to help charities ensure they fully understand any legal obligations they may have and to ensure expectations about the role between both parties are clear.

The guidance also identifies key principles to follow to help ensure volunteer internships are managed in line with good practice, give a good quality experience and ensure volunteer interns are treated fairly and within the law.

Key principles

  1. Be clear what the role is and its purpose before recruiting
  2. Ensure that a volunteer internship is a genuine volunteering opportunity
  3. Make sure volunteering opportunities are genuinely inclusive and accessible
  4. Support volunteer interns in accordance with good practice standards in volunteer management
  5. Ensure that volunteer intern positions do not undermine fair recruitment procedures
  6. Provide opportunities for evaluation and regular feedback
  7. Recognise the contribution of volunteer interns

More information on each principle and how to implement them is discussed in the guidance.

http://knowhownonprofit.org/people/volunteers-and-your-organisation/ncvoguidancevolunteerinternshipsvoluntarysector.pdf

You can find TeamKinetic on social media and listen to our podcast:

Twitter       Facebook       LinkedIn       YouTube       Instagram       Podcast

 

Have you enjoyed using TeamKinetic? If you could leave us a review on Capterra, we’d really appreciate it! We’ll even send you a little thank you.

Page 3 of 4

← Previous

Next →

Search

Subscribe to our blog

Enter your email address to subscribe to the TeamKinetic blog and receive notifications of new posts and stories.

Join 1,712 other subscribers.

Contact Details

Powered by WordPress & Theme by Anders Norén